John King has changed his accusatory tone since becoming the US Education Secretary. In his previous job as New York State Education Comissioner, he was consistently at odds with teachers. He promoted the questionable practice of using high stakes test scores to evaluate teachers and introduced controversial teacher discipline policies.
Now he has said that blaming teachers for lacks in student achievement, which became popular during Arne Duncan’s years, was a mistake. He wants to work together with teachers to solve student achievement problems. This development coupled with the new Every Student Succeeds Act, which allows States to determine high stakes testing policies for themselves, is refreshing change for educators nationwide. John King has also been working productively with Randi Weingarten, the President of the American Federation of Teachers, who had a very difficult time with Arne Duncan.
Now teachers can believe that they have educational leaders who are looking out for their interests.
Getting An Education 